Treading the Line
by Ave Brittania
Summary: There's a thin line between love and hate.  Rated M just in case.


If you walked down the street past Lillian Marie Evans, you would've stopped in your tracks and stared. Bright red fiery hair that matched her personality, sparkling emerald eyes which showed every emotion she felt, creamy pale skin that reddened at the slightest embarrassment, and a body most girls would kill for. Lillian Marie Evans was a girl everyone in the school of Hogwarts wanted, but of course, just could not get. Feisty and talented in almost every subject (with the exception of the very subject her nemesis excelled in), top of her class and one of the kindest girls to come across, you could not find another girl like Ms. Evans. Not that she rejected those boys, but simply because a certain messy haired, bespectacled boy scared them away.

Charlotte Juliette Vivienne Caroline Astoria Whitney Grimaldi was, for lack of better words, royally screwed. Yes, her life was perfect, but she was keeping a tremendous secret from her best friends. Her friends knew her as Caroline Whitney, the daughter of a Muggle lawyer. In reality she was the beautiful heir to the Monegasque throne. She had more money beyond comparison and was more beautiful than could ever be imagine. She was devastatingly beautiful, with high, chiseled cheek bones, luscious, brown hair (the kind only the French had), and soulful, hazel eyes. Standing at 5'8'', Charlotte was quite intimidating, but also a fiercely loyal friend. Princess Grimaldi had that feeling of mystery that every boy yearned to discover, yet the frosty exterior that made all of them cower in the corners. But if a guy ever wanted to discover the hidden Charlotte Grimaldi, it wouldn't take much for her to open up, but of course no boy had the courage, except the one she despised the most.

Emma Whitney Green was a petite, little ball of energy. Bright blue eyes that popped and with blond hair that bounced, she was the epitome of sunshine. She was a special girl, with brilliant Muggle school abilities and one of the top students of her class. Emma could make everyone smile and was never cruel to anybody, not even the mean girls. Of course nobody was perfect, and maybe twice a year she would have a mental breakdown, caused by the stress of living all year round at a boarding school, the lack of her love life due to the fact the boys only thought of her as a friend, and the cruelty of the mean girls. Nobody ever saw these breakdowns, with the exception of her very best friends.

Like Charlotte, Olivia Vanderbilt Collins was also hiding a secret. The heir to the Vanderbilt fortune meant she had many responsibilities to live up to, which did not include going to a British wizarding school. Her parents did not approve and therefore lived with her estranged aunt. Olivia wasn't particularly beautiful like Charlotte, or as bright and cheerful as Emma, or as talented as Lily, which made her feel lonely and just plain oftentimes. As the only living descendent of the Vanderbilts, Olivia would receive a large sum of money on her 18th birthday. Her friends had no idea the money she possessed, and she'd like to keep it that way. But at the time being, she was just a transfer student from America, like every other American teenager.

Alice Prewett had short, brown hair and a round, cheerful face. If you asked anyone, the unanimous answer would be that her smile was her best feature. It filled you with a warm, happy feeling, as if you did something right. She wasn't as bright as Emma, but she was sweet and charming. She seemed so innocent on the outside, but was full of many, many surprises. From day one, she and Frank Longbottom had had a connection. Yet from day one, nothing still had happened. But this year, she swore she would pin down the sweet, popular, loveable Frank Longbottom, before any other skank could steal him away.

Dominique Roberts was the school skank. Her bed notches included James Potter, Sirius Black, and Amos Diggory. Dominique had platinum blonde hair, boobs, a "fabulous" arse, long legs that stretched on and on, and big, innocent blue eyes. Admittedly she was good-looking and had much sex appeal, but as for her personality? ZERO. In fact, the only girls who liked her were Amanda Green and Isabelle Roberts, the two other, not-as-hot, not-as-popular skanks who followed her around like puppy dogs. Dominique was also a major manipulator, who used boys to get her every wish and convinced girls they were good friends before throwing them away after getting what she wanted. To put it simply, she was a bitch.

Amanda Green was a plain, stick-thin, brunette, pale-green eyed bitch who tried to strut her not-there-stuff. Pleasing Dominique seemed to be her life mission and to add more notches on her bed post, which was quite a lot for a girl with no boobs or arse. Isabelle Roberts was a little on the heavier side, with quite an impressive chest that was always hanging out of her shirt. Isabelle wasn't as bitchy or skanky as the other two, just simply longed to be popular and to be noticed by the boys. What better way to hang with the notable skanks of the school?

James Potter was the golden boy of Hogwarts. The heir to the Potter fortune and Manor, the boy had no shame. He grew up being revered, resented, and the target of envy, and for many years it had bothered him why he couldn't be _just_ a normal kid. But of course, he soon grew a shell and became a total arsehole so people like Lillian Evans could just not stand him. He was sweet to a girl when trying to get her in bed, a jerk when he was ending a relationship, a deliverer of cruel humiliation to Lily Evans (or that's what she called it in her head), and scarily loyal to his three best friends. All the girls he had hooked up with could not deny he was an expert in the art of seduction, with dangerously soft, messy black hair that always looked like he stepped off a broom, gorgeous hazel eyes, black-wire-rimmed round glasses that perched on the top of his regal Potter nose, those famous full lips, and a strong, masculine chin. From the first day on the train to Hogwarts, he had shamelessly pursued the beautiful Lily Evans. He couldn't describe it, but he knew one day Lillian Marie Evans would fall in love with James Henry Potter.

Sirius Orion Black never took the easy road, especially with girls. He never backed down from a duel, challenge, or just a dare. And a boy with his looks, he could get away with _anything_. Every silly girl he had ever hooked up had always hoped to get behind the frosty exterior and find the TRUE Sirius Black; too bad he was hidden away for nobody to find, except maybe the alarmingly beautiful Caroline Whitney. Sirius could smell a secret from a mile away, one of the many effects of having so many himself. He couldn't figure what it was, but he knew Caroline Whitney was hiding a deep secret. He swore he would discover it this year at Hogwarts. No one could be as beautiful as he was and not have as many secrets as him.

Many girls fancied the quiet, sensitive Remus Lupin. Little did they know, he was actually a werewolf! He was handsome in an old Muggle, Hollywood way with a charming smile, warm brown eyes, and sandy hair. His eyes were much older than he was, full of wisdom and truth and understanding. Remus was good friends with many of the girls, especially Lily Evans, with whom they connected well even though her unrequited hatred towards his best friend.

Peter Pettigrew was a rather boring fellow, slightly pudgy, with watery blue eyes. Most girls didn't understand why he was friends with the other three Marauders.

Frank Longbottom wasn't the most handsome boy, but he was sweet, charming, kind typical looking British teen. He was loyal and sweet, the perfect match to our darling Alice. He knew he wanted to become an auror, a career path his future wife would also follow into. Brown hair and deep, chocolate eyes which often flashed with compassion and kindness, him and his dear were complete and utter soul mates.

Stephan Alexandre William Henry Astor Whitney Grimaldi, known to many as William Whitney, fraternal twin brother to Miss Caroline Whitney, was a SEX GOD. He was a transfer from Beaubaxtons School of Magic in France in fifth year. He had rich, brown hair that swept across his forehead, striking green eyes that rivaled those of Miss Evans, and full, beautiful lips. He played Muggle soccer during the summers and was a rumored early draft to the French National Quidditch team. His body was therefore beautiful and sculpted to perfection. One rare exception to Mr. Whitney was he was truly a gentleman at heart. He hadn't put out to any girl just yet and treated every girl with respect and kindness. As a result, every girl had fallen head over heels for him at least once. However, Caroline and William had a legendary rivalry, even more so than Potter-Evans. Both vied for their parents attention. Both were ascetically perfect. Both were academically brilliant. Both were popular. Both were fashion-forward. Both were people-friendly. But in the end, there could only be one heir. Since Monegasque law stated the son takes precedence, it should be William who would inherit the throne. But Caroline was the older twin and the modern ages were changing many laws and Caroline hoped that certain law would be changed soon. Of course nobody knew the real reason behind the never-ending hatred and sabotage…

Thus begins our story. The story of friendship, loyalty, betrayal, love, hatred, passion; the story of best friends.

"Do you really love him?" he smirked, his soft, black hair falling into his stormy eyes. An involuntary shudder ran through me and I gulped. How could this boy have such a profound effect on me?

"Yes," I breathed, feeling his gaze upon me. I quickly looked down to the floor. I felt his hand guide my chin up till I was looking directly into his eyes. He slowly leaned in… and I freaked. I used my strength and pushed him away. He stumbled back and fell back onto the opposite wall. I quickly scurried away, hoping to forget what almost happened.

"Do you love her?" Moony's face was completely serious.

"Of course I love her!" I spluttered. "WHY ELSE WOULD I WASTE MY TIME?"

"Well Prongs…"

"Shut it, Padfoot."

"Olivia," I spoke in my lilting French accent. She looked up, her hazel eyes red-rimmed and mascara smeared all over her face. She quickly got up and straightened her dress.

"William, I was just—"

I stopped her sentence with my lips. Every other kiss had been passionate and sloppy and rough. This one was different. It signified the beginning of a beautiful relationship. It was sweet and soft and slow.

After I had run out of breath, I slowly backed off. Her eyes were wide with surprise and happiness. I smiled.

Then, the impossible happened. Her eyes showed anger and betrayal. A lone tear fell down her cheek. I reached my hand to wipe it away. She smacked it away.

"HOW DARE YOU," she whispered angrily. She balled up her hands. "HOW DARE YOU KISS ME KNOWING I'M YOUR SISTER'S BEST FRIEND. YOU BLOODY PRAT." My eyes were open in astonishment when her hand quickly slapped me across the cheek, presumably leaving a red handprint. I fell to the floor in shock. What happened to the love I felt in the kiss moments before?

All I could register was the _click-clack_ of her high-heels tapping the floor as she stalked off.

"'I love you, Lily Evans," he said, looking into my eyes. I was shocked. This couldn't be love. This was _puppy love._ He couldn't love me. He didn't even know me!

"We all know you love me," she purred as her hands pawed open my shirt. I pushed her away in disgust. I suddenly found the idea of hooking up with her repulsive.

"What's wrong, honey?" Amanda moaned. "Honey, I'm so hot."

She stared me in the eyes with her heavily lined eyes and bit her lip in a what appeared to be a seductive way; too bad it didn't do shit for me.

"You kissed him."

I nodded, the tears flooding down my cheeks. I sniffled and looked away in shame.

"I'm so, so so—"

"Get out."

"I'm sorry?" I stuttered.

"I said, get out you whore."

I felt like I had been slapped in the face. Never had she called me anything bad. _Ever._

"IF YOU WANT TO SNOG IT UP WITH MY BROTHER, THEN GET OUT AND YOU TWO CAN HAVE LITTLE FRENCH VANDERBILT BABIES."

She stood up and pulled open the door. She gestured to it, telling me to get out. I couldn't even think, let alone walk straight! I told her my deepest secret, and here she was, using it as if it was nothing big.

"How dare you." I growled. "I told you that in confidence."

"Mother would love you, do you know that?" she sneered. "The rich, beautiful, high-class, well-bred American marrying her baby boy. Go ahead. Go snog with him some more. There's nothing stopping you."

I was suddenly full of anger. _Who did this bitch think she was?_ It's not like I felt obligated to fall in lo—…Never mind. THE POINT IS…she had no right to go around telling me what I could and couldn't do.

"You know what? MAYBE I WILL!" I shrieked. "I'm going to meet the Princess and I'm going to impress her and maybe YES your own brother will get the throne, and what will you be? Nothing but a little girl who had her dreams _crushed._ That's right. CRUSHED. And maybe I will have little French Vanderbilt babies, and they'll be next in line for the throne. You have no right to speak to me like this. I AM YOUR BEST FRIEND. WE ARE LIKE SISTERS. Or at least, we were." I spoke the last sentence in a whisper and walked out, leaving a stunned girl standing in the doorway.

I hope you enjoyed my first chapter! Reviews, please?


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